First Battle of Arcadia (Earth-5875)
The First Battle of Arcadia was a major battle of the First Contact War between the United Nations Space Command and the Covenant on the Outer colony Arcadia, from February 9th, 2531 to February 10th, 2531. Prelude During one of the last engagements of the Shanxi Campaign, Covenant forces led by Arbiter Ripa 'Moramee discovered a forerunner relic hidden underneath Shanxi's north pole. There, Professor Ellen Anders studied the artifact, discovering it showed a pathway to the Procyon system, convincing Captain James Cutter to follow it, which led the [[UNSC Spirit of Fire (Earth-5875)|UNSC Spirit of Fire]] to Arcadia. Battle Two ''CCS''-class battlecruisers were the first ships to exit slipspace and arrive on Arcadia, with the UNSC Spirit of Fire arriving soon after. Soon the Spirit of Fire was supported by the [[UNSC Pillar of Autumn (Earth-5875)|UNSC Pillar of Autumn]], the [[UNSC Armstrong (Earth-5875)|UNSC Armstrong]], the [[UNSC Belfast (Earth-5875)|UNSC Belfast]], and the [[UNSC Texas (Earth-5875)|UNSC Texas]], which started engaging the battlecruisers. The Texas and Belfast were eventually lost to one of the cruisers, but not before destroying it, while the Autumn and the Armstrong severed heavy damage. After the surviving battlecruiser disabled the UNSC ships, it moved directly to the planet, with the Spirit of Fire following. Soon after the space battle, the surviving Covenant carrier started to orbit the planet, sending thousands of troops towards the planet's many cities, including its capital Pirth. The Colonial Marshal Bureau were deployed to counter the alien attackers, but were easily slaughtered for the most part duo to their inferior equipment and lack of military resources. During one of the CMB's evacuation efforts, hordes of Covenant warriors stormed through Pirth's streets in an attempt to stop the civilians from escaping and kill them. The Covenant met their match with the arrival of SPARTAN-II Red Team, led by Sergeant John Forge, who helped the police force in evacuating the surviving civilians. Despite their efforts, the Covenant destroyed most of the civilian Mariner freighters. The UNSC was able to save only a fraction of the world's inhabitants, being eventually forced to retreat to the outskirts of Pirth, being reinforced by SPARTAN-II Team Omega. Forge's Marines promptly established a fortification around the outskirts, linking with numerous stragglers. Led by the SPARTANs, they joined together to destroy three Covenant field bases, where the UNSC survivors were able to lead assaults against their enemies. Most of the Covenant warriors on Pirth were killed, and Team Omega and Forge were ordered by Cutter to return to the Spirit of Fire. , Professor Ellen Anders and Sergeant John Forge observing the Covenant's energy field.]]The UNSC then established a base at a destroyed Office of Naval Intelligence base in an Arcadian jungle, with Anders discovering a Covenant energy barrier hiding something of value for the hegemony. Captain Cutter became determined to discover the Covenant's finding, and had a large contingent of M808B Scorpions and HRUNTING/YGGDRASIL Mark IX Mantises to destroy nearby Covenant air troops and disable the barrier, with the Spirit of Fire eventually shooting its MAC gun to disable the energy. Under the shield dome, the UNSC discovered forerunner ruins guarded by three Type-29 Scarabs, whose lekgolo were using the technology of the ruins to upgrade themselves. The Marines of the Spirit of Fire stormed through the ruins, as the Scarabs attacked them. After an orbital attack by Captain Cutter, both walkers were destroyed. Arbiter Ripa 'Moramee returned to Arcadia under the orders of the Prophet of Regret and captured Ellen Anders during her investigation of the remnants of a Scarab, which he was successfully able to do after a brief duel against John Forge. Not long after, Admiral Preston Cole and the Third Fleet arrived on the Procyon system. Moments before the Spirit of Fire disappeared from the system, the [[UNSC Roman Blue (Earth-5875)|UNSC Roman Blue]], commanded by then-Captain Ernst Hood, moved towards the planet to capture a dropped log buoy sent by Cutter. But instead of acquiring the log, Hood ordered his ships to fire at a ''CPV''-class heavy destroyer to stop it from glassing the planet. As a consequence, the log was not retrieved, and Hood blamed himself for the disappearance of the UNSC Spirit of Fire. The covenant ships were eventually repelled, and the surviving ships fled the system. Aftermath Despite a technical UNSC victory, its forces suffered incredible casualties, followed by the capture of Professor Ellen Anders by Arbiter Ripa 'Moramee, who sent her to the Prophet of Regret, who wanted to use her mysterious ability to active forerunner technology in order to unlock an army of dreadnoughts at the Apex, on Etran Harborage. The [[UNSC Spirit of Fire (Earth-5875)|UNSC Spirit of Fire]] followed, leading to the Battle of Etran Harborage. After the end of the disappearance of Spirit of Fire, Captain Ernst Hood was struck with guilt, and provided financial support to Captain James Cutter's apparent widow, Mary, and their daughter Elisa, as well as his illegitimate family, supporting the mother of Daniel Clayton. When the UNSC regained control of the colony, good previsions were awry as the Covenant knew the location of the colony. Many colonies abandoned the planet, although many chose to stay, establishing the small settlement Abaskun, until they were slaughtered by the Covenant's second invasion of the colony in 2549, glassing and destroying it. Category:Earth-5875 Category:Battles of Earth-5875 Category:Events of Earth-5875 Category:Battles of the First Contact War (Earth-5875) Category:Events Category:Created by Draft227